He's in a bloody coma!

White padded walls.

Sickly sweet smiles.

The stench of disinfected rooms.

Souls torn from the vessels.

One heart moves.

Barely.

One heart breaks.

"It'll be ok, sweetie. He'll make it."

Lies.

The jaws of the abyss are open wide. What will you do when they won't close?

The darkness smiled.

Soon, my dear. Soon you'll be all mine. You'll walk by my side as my black queen.

I will give you what you truly want.

She didn't want to believe him.

But she did.

(Kaiba: 3300/???: 2900).

From his pseudo- private box, Leon sighed and took stock of the current situation.

Things weren't going bad. In actuality, the duel was going as good as could be hoped for. Kaiba, his unlikely defender called on the whim of a…a friend? Leon wasn't sure.

He examined the game more closely. It was Kaiba's move, and he had three cards in his hand. Despite having no cards facedown, he did have his trademark monster in play, still one of the most powerful in the whole game.

Blue-Eyes White Dragon…

That was the one reason he wasn't worried for Kaiba. Whomever he duelled, Kaiba was almost always in a good position as long as he had access to those cards. However, as he'd rather cuttingly told Kaiba himself, that didn't mean he was invincible, and it was obvious from seeing his other half duel that he was no slouch at it. However, his current position was truly unenviable, having nothing in play but one facedown card, and no cards in his hand.

They're both far more skilled then me… he realised. Strangely, that thought didn't bother him. With any luck, he wouldn't need to do anything after Kaiba won.

With any luck.

He turned his eyes back to the game.

Kaiba was feeling smug. His opponent had lost almost all his cards to his superior skills, and he was almost certain the only card he did have left in play wasn't going to help him get out of this mess. After all, it hadn't stopped his Blue-Eyes from blasting him into next week.

"I place one card facedown, and summon Lord of Dragons in defence mode (1100). That's all for now."

A vaguely purple aura surrounded Kaiba's Blue-Eyes as his monster knelt down. His opponent looked calmer now, but on the inside he was positively seething with anger. He tore a card from his deck, almost ripping it in half.

What the hell is it about this guy? Why him?

Whatever Leon's reasons, the parasite was certain of one thing: it was a very good choice. Kaiba had almost had him on the ropes in that last move.

Almost. He flicked an eye across the field, analysing. He caught sight of Kaiba's smirk. A burning desire to shove it off his face flickered within him. He gestured to his facedown card, which flipped up at the touch of a button. Kaiba's grin faltered, but didn't vanish.

At least it's a reaction.

"I activate the Trap, Kingslayer!"

The card's art depicted Claudius from Hamlet. He was grinning evilly, pouring poison into a sleeping man's ear.

"This card allows me to destroy one monster on the field. Following that, we both summon a monster from our hands. Since I cannot target Blue-Eyes, I destroy Lord of Dragons!"

Three long knives flashed out of the card, skewering Kaiba's monster. The purple aura surrounding Blue-Eyes vanished. Kaiba, oddly, did not react. He merely took the last card out of his hand and flipped it around.

"I summon a second Blue-Eyes (3000)!"

Upon seeing it, his opponent's eyes went wide.

"Oh, bugger."

In a flash, a second white dragon appeared behind Kaiba. The two monsters flanked him, like the bodyguards of a king. The smirk grew even wider.

"Not even that punk Wheeler would have let me do that. You're really out of your league, yo-"

"Enough of your damn talk, Kaiba! I use the effect of my trap to summon Smaug the Magnificent (???)!"

His new creature was a dragon, but not one Kaiba had ever seen before. It was a fierce orange in colour, about as large as Kaiba's Blue-Eyes. A pair of dark wings swept from its long, sinuous body. The front of its chest was covered in a breastplate of gold and jewels, forming odd armour. Its jaw was long and thin, almost like a crocodile. Its arms and legs were stubby, ending in wicked, hooked claws. Hot coals gleamed in the eye sockets. It roared, flames shooting from its nostrils.

"What on earth is that thing?!"

His opponent sighed.

"Kaiba, for being the guy who beat the best chess player in the world when he was twelve, you're pretty stupid. Smaug the Magnificent can select one monster in play and copy all of its attack points. Also, Smaug is not destroyed when it battles a monster with equal attack power. So…it's impossible to defeat in battle, basically."

He stuck his tongue out childishly at Kaiba.

"Nyah-nyah, Kaiba-boy. I copy all three thousand of your dragon's power!"

At his command, Smaug began to uncoil. More like a serpent then a dragon, it seemed to hiss at Kaiba. An orange glow surrounded one of his dragons, causing Smaug's power to skyrocket to three thousand. He raised an arm to his dragon.

"Smaug the Magnificent, destroy Blue-Eyes!"

Golden flames streamed from his monster's long maw, met by a ferocious blast of white lightning from Blue-Eyes. The two attacks seemed to struggle for supremacy, both wyrms roaring with the strain. Slowly, however, Smaug's power began to tell. The lightning flickered and went out, leaving Blue-Eyes to be incinerated. Kaiba was left with his facedown card and his other Blue-Eyes.

Wonder why he didn't stop my attack?

"So much for the legendary engine of destruction." He mocked. "Your move."

Kaiba was almost incandescent with rage. Far from inspiring fear in his opponent, however, it merely drew another laugh. He drew, almost dropping the card in his anger. He shoved it into his duel disk roughly.

"I switch Blue-Eyes to defence mode (2500). Then I summon another monster in defence mode and end my turn."

His opponent smirked. "Not much else you can do, eh Kaiba-boy?"

"Shut up!"

He shrugged. "As you wish. I draw!"

As he picked up his card, his serpentine dragon began to glow a bright orange. His duel disk also began to glow with an identical colour. Seeing Kaiba about to ask, he explained.

"Smaug has another effect. While it remains face-up on the field, I draw one card during my Standby Phase."

His duel disk spat a card out, giving him a total of two in his hand. The levity was gone from his face- he was serious about this now, as cold and calculating as arctic ice.

"Smaug the Magnificent, destroy his second Blue-Eyes!"

Another fireball erupted from his dragon's jaws, leaving little more then a charred skeleton behind. His eyes danced with glee at the sight.

"Your move, Kaiba."

By this point, Kaiba felt himself beginning to lose his cool. A blast from Blue-Eyes was the last thing most people who played him saw, but this rat had destroyed two of the three with barely any effort. He took a deep breath, steadying his hands.

Leon was worried. His other half had the luck of the devil.

Or the skill of it.

"Come on…" he breathed.

"Aw, what's wong Kaiba-boy? Afwaid of the big bad Dwagon?"

His opponent was mocking him in a horrible baby voice. Kaiba let his face fall back into a sneer.

"Sticks and stones. Time to abandon the sinking ship, you rat. I draw!"

His card was Pot of Greed. Kaiba took stock of the current situation. His facedown monster and his set Magical Trick Mirror wasn't going to be enough to stop Smaug, and he had nothing else in his hand.

"Might want to pray to Lady Luck, Kaiba. Or maybe your babe Kisara…"

He stopped, seeing the murderous look on Kaiba's face. Goading him was fun, but he had to resist the temptation. Pot of Greed's card had appeared in play. He gritted his teeth.

"Of course. The hero always wins…"

Kaiba picked up his two cards. His face split into what passed for a grin.

"I sacrifice my facedown monster. This lets me summon my Dragon Seeker in attack mode (2000)!"

His monster shattered, to be replaced by an odd, grey-green winged creature. It beat its wings, sending a shockwave of wind across the field.

"Did you lose your capacity to add? Smaug still has all three thousand points it copied from your Blue-Eyes, which is more then enough to wipe your little pet out."

Kaiba raised an eyebrow.

"Is it?"

As if on cue, his monster beat its leathery wings again. Another blade of wind scythed through the air, slashing Smaug the Magnificent in twain. His opponent howled as the top half of his dragon literally fell away.

"You son of a-"

"Dragon Seeker destroys one dragon on the field when it is summoned!"

Kaiba's expression was triumphant. "Attack him directly!"

A horrible grating sound of claw on flesh and bone filled the air. His opponent was knocked flying, landing heavily.

"D-damn it…"

(Kaiba: 3300/???: 900)

He spat out a cloud of blood. Dragon Seeker had slashed him across the face, leaving three thick lines of scarlet. He coughed, shaking hard. Kaiba didn't bother baiting him.

As he staggered to his feet a thought flashed through both his and his opponent's minds.

You're pretty good, you know that?

He drew.

Three cards in the hand. Nothing left in play. Less then a thousand points left.

And he still fought on.

Kaiba narrowed his eyebrows.

For once, he thought, I may enjoy myself.

"I set two cards facedown. I end my turn."

His expression was oddly colourless. He was taking this more seriously then ever. Kaiba didn't give it much thought. He was preoccupied with ending the game. He flicked the top card off his deck in a flashy manner.

Excellent.

His opponent seemed to have caught Kaiba's expression.

"Activate Kingslayer!"

The familiar Trap spewed forth three blades, impaling Dragon Seeker and destroying it.

"You know the drill, Kaiba. We both pick a monster in our hands and summon it, no strings. Now, considering the way your eyes light up a second ago, we both know you've got the last Blue-Eyes in your hand, right?"

Kaiba nodded. He placed the card onto his duel disk. The last white dragon appeared on the field in attack mode, screaming for the thrill of the fight. His opponent grinned.

"How very predictable. I use my Trap to summon Exploder Dragon in defence mode (0)!"

His monster, a small, black dragon took its position in play. It clutched a spiky cannonball in its scaly claws, hissing softly.

Kaiba was trapped and he knew it.

If I attack, I'll lose my Blue-Eyes and be wide open! But if I don't, he'll just attack me on his turn! What can I do!?

He ran through his deck mentally, images flashing through his mind's eye. Card after card, but nothing came to mind that hadn't already been played. Then…

That's it.

The answer had been in his hand all along.

"You going to make a move? I'm dying of old age over here, Kaiba-boy."

Kaiba just glared. He slotted a card into his duel disk.

"I activate Spell Sanctuary!"

The card's art depicted an old manor. A bright light descended from the thick clouds above it. Spell Sanctuary would allow both players access to any Spell card left in their respective decks. And he had the just the card to get around this lock.

"Ah…how clever. What card will you take?"

Kaiba removed his deck and began to cycle through the cards. He grabbed one, Silent Doom, and shuffled it. He noticed his opponent had already picked his card. He didn't recognise the artwork, showing a scarlet dragon's head emerging from a golden mirror.

"Blue-Eyes, destroy Exploder Dragon with White Lightning attack!"

His opponent laughed. "Thanks for taking my bait. Exploder Dragon, counterattack!"

His dragon flew straight through the jet of white light, disintegrating. The cannonball tumbled through the air, exploding a few seconds later just in time to catch Blue-Eyes in the blast.

"Nice try."

Kaiba began to roar with arrogant laughter. His opponent looked at him, surprised.

"Am I missing something?"

Kaiba's eyes gleamed. "Of course you are. I play Silent Doom, which lets me resurrect my Blue-Eyes in defence mode. That means no direct attacks for you, so tough luck."

His dragon reappeared with a joyous roar, beating its great white wings fiercely. His opponent scowled.

"Bah. Good move, but not good enough. You done?"

Kaiba nodded.

Why is he acting like we're pals?

"Why indeed, Kaiba. Why indeed."

He picked up his next card, giving him a total of two.

"Damn, I'm good. I activate Future Fusion!"

A massive, purple hole appeared in the black sky above them, a tear in the fabric of space. A ferocious wind sprang up, threatening to suck them all into its embrace.

"What's going on?" Kaiba roared, barely hearing himself above the tumult.

"Future Fusion lets me send monsters that are used in a fusion from my deck to the graveyard, and in two turns I can summon it!" his opponent yelled back. "So I'll send my Meteor Dragon and another Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"

As he tossed the cards, their silhouettes were sucked into the gaping pit in the skies. The wind intensified, nearly blowing Kaiba off his feet. The madness was back in his opponent's eyes. He held the final card in his hand towards the heavens, pointing it like a sword.

One's a psychotic and the other's a manic. God, I'm starting to miss Yugi and the dweeb squad.

"Time for my last card! Dragon's Mirror lets me remove monsters for a fusion from the game, and summon out their combination! So I remove the monsters I just dumped to summon my strongest dragon yet, the Meteor Black Dragon!"

The great hole in the sky seemed to shake uncontrollably. The heavens cracked with thunder as the great tear vomited forth a creature unlike anything Kaiba had seen. It seemed to be beyond huge- it was monstrous. Vivid purple skin, cracked, mottling, and bleeding like lava. Short, stubby wings that seemed barely able to support its massive bulk. A long neck, spines sticking out of the back of it. A long orange stripe ran up the centre of the thing's chest. A long purple tail thrashed behind it.

It bellowed a battle cry as it slammed into the ground, throwing rocks everywhere. Kaiba froze.

"Like my new creature? Thirty-five hundred points of absolute brutality. And all of it is coming your way! Volcanic Eruption Flame!"

With Blue-Eyes in defence mode, she-it- stood no chance. She was buried under a current of molten fire. Kaiba scowled. His opponent literally danced at the devastation his monster's attack caused.

"Three for three, Kaiba-boy! I can wipe you out next round, since we both know that facedown's not going to save your ass. After all, I've blasting you at least twice since you put it in play. It's over!"

Kaiba merely smiled his arrogant smile. All three of his Blue-Eyes were gone, yet he wasn't worried.

Because that's just what he wanted.

"Did it ever occur to your feeble mind that I might have just been waiting for the right time?"

"Yeah, right." He scoffed. "And I'm the Queen of France."

Kaiba pressed a button on his duel disk. His facedown card flipped up.

"Oh. You weren't kidding."

Kaiba laughed cynically. "I don't kid. Ever."

"I'm starting to see that."

Magical Trick Mirror. It would allow Kaiba to activate one Spell card in his opponent's graveyard.

Dragon's Mirror.

Three arcs of light blasted out of Kaiba's duel disk, twisting together like a ribbon. His opponent watched, fearful, as they combined, forming a great, three-headed wyrm. A runic symbol adorned each of the three heads. It was far larger then the purple dragon, and far more deadly. Both dragons roared at each other, the sound deafening. The scene looked like some kind of apocalyptic nightmare, especially with the black vortex in the sky.

Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon Vs Meteor Black Dragon.

Winner takes all.

All we need is a few ruined buildings. Kaiba thought, amused.

"You going to finish me off with that, or go for the big finish?" his opponent asked, remarkably blasé about his impending death.

Kaiba snorted derisively and picked up a card.

"Normally I don't do requests, but…maybe just this once. I activate Card of Demise!"

The card's art showed the rather gruesome image of a man with his hand locked in a guillotine. His opponent raised an eyebrow.

"Charming. Since you have nothing left in your hand, draw your five cards."

Kaiba did. His opponent tapped his foot impatiently.

"Mind if we get on with this? I'm anxious to be done- I've wasted enough time on you. Even if you are one of the best duellists I've ever met."

Kaiba blinked. Was that a compliment?

He inclined his head. "Then let's get on with the finale."

His opponent nodded. "Before the last curtain falls, the hero must take his bow."

"Spare me the drama, please? I play Monster Reborn to revive a monster in my Graveyard, the Sword of Soul!"

A long, bronzed blade shimmered into existence, its point embedded in the ground. Kaiba took another card from his hand.

"Next I activate my Fiend Sanctuary!"

His opponent suddenly looked agitated.

"That creates a Metal Fiend Token! Why…what the hell do you want with three monsters?!"

Kaiba did not answer. His fingers caressed one of the other cards he had drawn lovingly. The most powerful card he would ever hold.

"I sacrifice Sword of Soul, my Metal Fiend Token, and my Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon!"

"Uh-oh. I think this is going to hurt!"

Kaiba's monsters transformed into a great pillar of blue light. Lightning began to flash all around him, engulfing his duel disk in electricity. He was cackling in triumph. The expression was very familiar.

Too familiar. It took him a while to place it from Leon's memory, but he found it.

The blue light began to form a shape. Thick wings, blue skin, as large as a house. The face of a demon.

A shape from hell. The light clicked on.

"You can't…"

Kaiba was euphoric. "I can. I summon Obelisk the Tormentor!"

The blue light erupted, revealing the sealed god. It flexed its huge muscles and bellowed, the scream strong enough alone to shake the core of a duellist. The iron-bronze Sword of Soul appeared in its mighty hand, boosting its attack strength by a thousand thanks to that monster's own special effect. It dwarfed Meteor Black Dragon.

"Five thousand points. Six hundred more then you have."

He turned his back on his opponent.

"Obelisk, Fist of Fate."

Job's done.

(Kaiba: 3300/???: 0).

His god crushed his opponent with one swing. The fallout sent him sprawling, hurling him onto his back. He landed, quivering. The shock made him physically sick, causing him to vomit as soon as his Life Points hit zero. Through the trembling, he saw Kaiba beginning to fade away, along with his cards.

Of course. The task is finished. But Jesus, I'm going to murder Leon for this.

"K-Kaiba…"

He coughed, sending fluid everywhere. Kaiba stopped.

"What?"

"Nice duel."

Kaiba closed his eyes briefly.

"Yeah."

Blackness began creeping into the corner of his vision.

"You know it won't stop me?"

"Yeah."

Kaiba was almost completely gone now. He laughed hollowly.

"He knew. This changes nothing."

He could barely see now.

"Then why send you?"

"I think he wanted to see how you would fair against me."

That's all?

He knew it was true. That was all. Kaiba was smirking again.

"What?"

"You know what's coming next, right?"

"Aye. It's the last act before the curtain falls."

"Funny that I'm rooting for the villain."

And with that, he was gone. And it was only then that his opponent let unconsciousness take him.

Leon stood.

He didn't expect Kaiba to be able to destroy this thing. Villains don't give up when you beat them at Duel Monsters.

At least they shouldn't.

He looked around at his heart.

Soon, it would be a battleground.

It always was.

Taylor was crying. Stupid, she knew. In the middle of all this, it shouldn't be the crying that irked her. But right now, it was all she wanted to do. Sit in a dark corner, away from the world, and sob her heart out.

Because he wouldn't come.

She'd be left alone.

She'd rot.

She was losing herself.

She couldn't resist his embrace.

He destroyed me.

It destroyed me.

I destroyed me.

"And its going to destroy you." She whispered.

"Don't let it."